Feeding device



Nov. 2o, 192s.

A. BARGEBOER FEEDING DEVICE Filed Sept. 23, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet l FIC-3.1.

e lo L01* Nov. 20,- 1928.

A. BARGEBOER FEEDING DEVICE Filed sept. 25, 1924 2 sheets-sheet 2 FISQ.

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E1/av eline/11 Patented Nev. 2o, 192e.

UNITED STATESv PATENT OFFICE.

FEEDING DEVICE'.

Application filed September 23, 1924y Serial No. 739,435, and in the Netherlands October 23, 1923.

My present invention relates to automatic feeding devices for cut tobacco and other material of a similar character and has for its object a simple and reliable device adapted to feed the material uniformly without consuming much energy.

In order that myinvention may be clearly understood I Lshall proceed to describe the same in connection with a known cigarillos machine, but I wish to` emphasize that the same can be applied to other types of ma* chinesas well.`

On the annexed drawing, Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a cigarillos machine of the type disclosedcin m-y prior specification of Patent No. 1,480,490. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of my novel feeding device, Fig. 3 a top view', partly a horizontal section of an impeller used for actuating and in this sense forming part of th-e feeding device, Fig. 4 a cross sectional view along the line IV-IV in Fig. 2, and Fig. 5 a horizontal section of a modified impeller.

In Fig. 1, the frame of the cigarillos machine is designated by 1. Supported in this frame is a short belt conveyor 2, and a pressure roller 3 Vcoacting therewith for feeding tobacco into the path of a reciprocating knife 4, the cut tobacco being received by a hopper 5 whence it falls into a space 6. An impeller (7, 13) serves to push the tobacco from the space 6 to the right into a space 8, where it is engaged by a conveyor Vto be described in further detail hereinafter. Said conveyor moves the tobacco into a chamber 9 located in alignment therewith, a parting knife 10 being` provided for separating the tobacco in chamber 9 from the body portion. The chamber 9 is hinged to the frame 1 and provided with a hinged bottom, so that, when it has swung downward through 900, the tobacco thereiny may be push-ed by a. stam-per 11 directly into the usual groove 12 of the rolling table.

The impeller (Figs. 2 and 3) is composed of a plurality of pusher bars 7 arranged side by side in a box 13 and loaded by springs 14, which tend to push them to the right. The box 13 is provided with two lugs 15 engaging a rod 16, which passes through an velongated slot of a lever 17 (Fig. l). This lever is swung alternately to the left and to the right by a cam 19 coacting with an antifriction roller 18 on the lever 17, and by a coiled retraction spring 20, respectively. The left hand end of the impeller stroke is obviously determined by the maximum diameter of the cam 19, its length of stroke depending upon the quantity of tobacco in the space 6 and upon the tension of spring 20.

Fig. 5 illustrates a modified construction of the impeller. The pusher bars here are designated by 21 and are pivotally coupled in pairs through triangular hinge plate 22, which in turn are pivotally coupled in pairs through larger hinge plates 23, the latter being hinged together through a large hinge plate 24. The plate 24 is pivoted to a support 25A in the'boX 13, which has a screw-threaded portion 26 through which it may be connected to a suitable driving member for imparting reciprocatory motion thereto,

The spring loaded pusher bars .7 or the pivotally interconnected pusher bars 21 can be adjusted toexert the saine pressure on the tobacco so that the latter is uniformly fed to the conveyor. rIhe uniformity in the `feed can still be increased by allowing the impeller after each stroke, or after Aa predetermined numberV of strokes to move laterally alternately in the one and in the other direction through a. dist-ance equal to one half of the width of one pusher bar, when the end bars on both sides should have a width equal to one half of that of theothers and the total width of the space, through which the tobacco is pushed to the right by the impeller, should be smaller by the same amount than the total width of the pusher bars. It will be Linderstood that with this construction the center of each bar 7 or 21 will, after each lateral motion, engage the tobacco where this was just opposite the joint between two bars at the previous stroke. i

The conveyor, which receives the tobacco from the impeller, is composed of an upper series of alternating bars 27 and 31, and a lower series of alternating bars 28 and 32. yEhe bars 27 and 28 are provided on their working faces with forwardly inclined teeth 29 and 30, respectively, but the bars 31 and 32 have smooth working faces` n The bars of the group 31V, 32 are alternato ly moved' vertically towards and away .from each other, whereas the bars of group 27, 23 are reciprocated horizontally in addition to being moved vertically towards and away from one another, it being understood that when the bars 27, 23 are moved inwards, the bars 31, 32 moveoutwards and vice versa.y Consequently, when the toothed bars 27, 23 grip the tobacco `between them, the latter is released by the bars 31, 32d Immediately les thereafter the'A bars 27, 28 move to the right, taking the tobacco with them. At the end of this stroke they release the tobacco, which is then immediately gripped by the group of bars 3l, 32, whereupon the bars 27, 28 are retracted (to the left) to again `grip the tobacco, which is thereby intermittently ted on to theright and eventually pushedv into the Chamber 9. In'praotice it has been found that Vith this feeding device the Weight oit the tobacco severed byveach stroke of the knife l0 is approximately constant.

The mechanism for imparting the required motions to the Vconveyor bare and to the knives has not been illustrated as this is of ordinary construction and does not form part oil the invention.

It desired, the bars 3l, 32 could also be pro-- vided With teeth and be moved lengthwise alternately With the bars 27, 28, but iin this case the tobacco would be liable to be damaged by the teeth of the one lgroup oi' barsk when conveyed by the bars or" the other group.

It should be noted, that in the embodiment shown a bar of the groupv 27, 28 is placed vertically oppositea bar et the group 81, 32 so as to prevent the tobacco from expanding too much when the bars of one group move away from each other.

What I claim is :V-

l. In a device for feeding` tobacco and similar material to a machine for Working-2,1 on the material, an upper series of parallel conveyor bars, a lower Series of conveyor bars, said lower series of bars being` parallel to each other and to said upper series, a plurality of gripper bars associated with each ot said series and an impeller for feeding; material between said series ot bars, said conveyor bars being' adapted to move toward each other to grip the material and move it longitudinally. Y

Q. In a device for feeding tobacco and similar material to a machine for Workingr on the material, an upper series ot' parallel con- 1foyer barej a lower Series of conveyor bars, said lower series of barsbeing parallel to each other and to said upper series, a plurality ot' gripper bae associated with each of said Series and an impeller for feeding material between' said series of bars, said Conveyor bars being adapted to move toward `each other to grip the material and move it longitudinally, the said gripper bars beingl adapted to be moved trom each other toprelease Said material, vvhile the material is being moved ,loiigitudinally.

3. A device as claimed in claim l in which said conveyor bars are provided With teeth, the other bars of each series having smooth working faces.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature ADOLF BARGEBOER. 

